Was all set to head out for a pedal yesterday morning but Stevie P pulled out to due illness so I ended up going to Callum’s football instead.
Davie and Gilly were heading out this morning but with Callum’s rugby tournament on at Calderglen I had to give this one a miss. Cue Ian making a heart felt plea on Facebook for someone to come out and play after the Giro! Having returned from the rugby tournament about 1:30pm I was free to go out and play and before I could get my brain in gear my fingers had typed a message back committing myself to going out with Ian “Iron Man” Hockey. What had I let myself in for!
Now for those of you who don’t know Ian let me explain. You get cyclists, then you get duathlon dudes and dudettes, then you get triathletes, next in the chain comes Iron Men followed at the top of the spectrum by the “Hockey Family“! No offence intended but they ain’t human! I’m convinced there was a radiation leak where they lived when they were younger and they all gained “Super Powers“!
I got myself kitted up and as soon as the Giro finished I headed to the Arnold Clark garage to meet Ian who was there waiting for me. As soon as Ian saw me approach he set off and we headed through Jackton into Eaglesham.
As we passed the crossroads we hit the first climb out of Eaglesham. Ian just seemed to glide up the climb and distanced himself from me. I didn’t think I was going too slow but there you go. Ian soared up the first climb of the Moors then I caught up with him. Ok it was more like he stepped off the gas to allow me to catch up. I held my own with him for the next two climbs on the Moors, though he looked like at point he could just drop a gear and drop me like a coach drops the fat kid from the school football team! We crested the final climb and approached the A77.
As we turned right onto the A77 a guy on a triathlon bike shot past. Ian nodded to me that we would reel him in and reel him in we did. He didn’t seem to happy about that and put the foot down again, to which with me on the front, yes believe it or not I was on the front, we reeled him in for a second time and left him for dust as we cruised along at 25mph!
Having distanced ourselves from the Triathlon dude we swung a right onto Mearns Road tackling a few hills before turning right onto Humbie Road. As we cruised along Humbie Road Ian asked me how I was feeling to which I replied, “Fine“. He was quick to point out that if I was feeling fine I wasn’t trying hard enough! Lol
At this point he suggested doing the loop again and again before my brain got into gear I was pot committed! Arriving at the traffic lights we swung a right to start the climbs all over again.
As we passed the crossroads we hit the first climb out of Eaglesham. Ian just seemed to glide up the climb and distanced himself from me. I didn’t think I was going too slow but there you go. Ian soared up the first climb of the Moors then I caught up with him. Ok it was more like he stepped off the gas to allow me to catch up. I held my own with him for the next two climbs on the Moors, though he looked like at point he could just drop a gear and drop me like a coach drops the fat kid from the school football team! We crested the final climb and approached the A77.
Now you maybe thinking you’ve just experienced a bit of Deja Vu view there and that you’ve already read the above paragraph, and you’d be correct, the second loop of the Moors went pretty much the same way as the first expect a little faster, so I saved my little fingers some typing and just copied and pasted the paragraph.
Like the first loop we cruised along the A77, this time their was no dude on a triathlon bike to annoy. I half expect Ian to suggest a third loop but thankfully he didn’t and we swung a left at the traffic lights in Eaglesham this time, through Jackton and back into East Kilbride. We took a little detour as Ian showed me where the new headquarters of the Whitelee Warriors Social Club is being built, aka his new hoose!
We passed by Hairmyres and Ian took a right at the roundabout at the Arnold Clark garage and headed home while I plodded on keep my average speed up as I traveled the final couple of miles back to my house recording 41 miles and an average speed of 18.43mph in the process!
While I showered then lay flatout on the couch Ian had headed out for a run, probably trying to burn some of that radiation off!
Felt really strong tonight and Ian certainly made me work for my average speed, miles and calories!
In the best shape of my life! Two weeks ago I averaged a speed of 15.7mph over 56miles in Arran, then last week I recorded an average speed of 18mph over 81 miles in the Eatpe Caledonia, then tonight averaging 18.43mph over 41 miles.
Big thanks to Ian for pushing me tonight, it certainly wasn’t a leisurely Sunday evening pedal!
With the sun shining this morning there was no way I was taking the car to work, the bike was my chosen chariot. After all who knows when that orange glowing ball in the sky will make its next appearance!
Felt strong on the commute into work recording an average speed of 16.6mph over the 7.16 mile course. Smashed a minute off my PB so was well chuffed!
On the way home the sun had disappeared and the clouds had gathered. I opted for the gilet but decides to leave the arm warmers off. It may have been overcast but it was still warm and I could have done without the gilet.
The commute home went very well as I averaged 18mph over the 6.81 mile course smashing my previous PB by just under a minute!
So a good day at the office, or should I say commute to and from the office!
In the best shape I’ve been for years and loving it!
After months of hard graft in terrible conditions, the Etape Caledonia was finally upon us. Stevie Potter picked me up on the Friday night just after 7pm and we headed to the Travel Lodge in Perth which would be base camp for the next 3 days.
Davie Mullin and Stevie Haining also headed up on the Friday night. Once we checked in we headed across to the attached Harvester pub. Stevie P and myself ordered a bite to eat and we joined Stevie and Davie for a couple of pints, 3 to be precise. Well larger has carbs in it doesn’t it, no? Oh well we were wrongly informed! We got kicked out the pub around 11:30pm and headed back to the hotel where we called it a night.
Saturday morning saw us head across to the Harvester and tuck into a fry up, at this stage food is good! Later that morning we were joined by Ian Hockey and Willie Rosling, shortly followed by Chris Hunter and Gilly.
Once Willie had managed to transport the 10 ton of food he brought with him we headed off to Pitlochry to register for the following days Etape. We duly registered and collect our race pack then met up with Si before having a look around the stands that were setup selling over priced goods to a captive audience. I turned my back for two minutes and the boys had all ordered big fat greasy lamb burgers! Will need to speak to the Team nutritionist on this matter! Just for the record I didn’t have one, athlete and all that!
The Team tucking into healthy carb ridden greasy lamb burgers!
Having managed to drag the team away from the burger stall, as they were contemplating a second burger, we took a stroll around town and went for a look at the fish climbing ladder only to be thoroughly disappointed! We seemed to be doing a lot of walking the day before a 80 mile sportive! Will need to consult the Team fitness guru on that on! Really need to get the ship in order!
We headed back to the cars and made our way to Aberfeldy where there was supposed to be a festival of cycling….. boy that was disappointing! I did however meet up with one of my mates that I used to work with. It was good to catch up with you Colin. While I was catching up with Colin the boys sneaked off to the food van and ordered a roll and haggis! If you can’t beat them join them! So I did and got myself one too!
With not much going on at the festival of cycling we decided to head back to Perth to catch the first half of the FA Cup Final before heading out for tea. Just as Stevie and I were about to leave Aberfeldy he suggested that we go and take a look at the “King of the Mountains” stage as it wasn’t too far away. So off Stevie P and I set on a recce of the main climb we’d be doing the following day.
After we King of the Mountains section we continued on following the route and discovered a cheeky wee 90° left turn into a steep climb which only lasted about 250-300 meters, but it was a tough climb and one that would most definitely catch people out if they didn’t know about it. We continued along the narrow road on what would be the last 3 miles of the roue when we discovered that Gilly had already beaten us around the section!
Looks like Gilly had already been around sorting out some self appreciation!
Having checked out the main climbs for the following day we headed into Perth to meet up with the rest of the boys who had found a pub to watch the first half of the FA Cup. We arrived to find them tucking into alcoholic beverages! I stuck to the soft drinks being the athlete that I am! Lol
The less athletic wing of the Whitelee Warriors having a bevvy the day before the Sportive
6pm soon arrived and we headed down to the Italian restaurant that Gilly had booked us into to carb up. We all got tore into pasta dishes while the less athletic wing got tore into the bevvy again! With tea finished we headed back to the hotel where we got our kit ready for the following morning. Numbers were pinned onto back of jerseys and stuck to front of helmets. Timing chips were attached to the bikes and we were good to go.
Kit all looked out and ready for the Sportive
With everything ready for the following day we headed for an early bed, 9pm or 10pm can’t really remember but I did remember it was a 4:20am rise the following morning. The alarm clock duly rang and it was time to get kitted up and grab a quick breakfast.
I jumped in Ian’s futuristic car with Wille, Stevie P jumped in with Davie and Stevie H while Chris, Si and Gilly traveled together. Now Ian’s car is some machine! It slows down when you get too close to the car in front and does a host of other things that cars shouldn’t do! We watched some of the Tour de France from last year on the cars media center to get us in the mood.
We arrived in Pitlochry around an hour before our start time so I took the time to wake myself up properly while waiting in the toilet queue in the chilly morning air. As I was waiting in the queue Willie turned up armed with a toilet roll in his hand! I really felt for the people that were going in after him!
It was now time, we got the bikes ready and headed the short distance to the start line and were met with an abundance of lycra clan men and women, some suiting the lycra more than others! I couldn’t believe the amass of people before me! 5000 cyclist lined up waiting to start. I really wondered how they were going to organise this properly but having had years of practice it went smoothly. Our wave was soon called and Ian, Willie, Davie and myself made it to the front and set off under starters orders. As we set off we managed to line up 4 abreast across the road and get our photo taken by the official photographers as we did so.
So that was us, we were off on the 81 mile route, many of the team had been untested at this distance so it was going to be an interesting day! The pace started to quicken and I tried to hold on to Ian and Willie’s wheel but soon realised that I would never make it round if I kept up that sort of pace, so I let them go. 1.3 miles in my chain slipped forcing me to stop and fix it.
I picked the pace up and left Davie and the rest of the team, with the exception of Ian and Willie who were long gone. I jumped from wheel to wheel as I made my way through fellow riders. Always a confidence booster as you leave other riders with club kit on trailing behind you.
The first 20 miles flew in and I stopped at the first feed station to fill up my bottles, take on some food and give my mum and dad a quick call to let them know where I was. Just as I was about to start off I bumped into Si, Gilly, Davie and Stevie Haining who’d just arrived at the feed station. Davie and I decided to leave and I soon distanced myself from Davie as I picked up the pace again.
42 miles later and at the foot of the King of the Mountains section I was met with the 2nd feed station and again stopped to refuel, stock up on gels and give my parents a call to update them on my progress. They were coming to see me later on so it was just for timings that I called them. After refueling I set off up the mountain climb and was surprised at how easy it was. Ok it wasn’t a doddle but it definitely wasn’t as bad as it looked or I thought it would be. One thing that did annoy we through the climb and all the climbs during the day was the slow people hogging the right hand side block the route for the faster riders.
Having completed the King of the Mountains section the next stop was feed station 3, 47 miles in. I literally rolled into the station, filled my bottle up and set on my merry way again. Just as I was leaving the feed station I met Si so we tagged together for the next 24 miles. We got a good pace going and soon felt like the pied piper as every time we looked back more people had joined our train, none seeming willing to have a turn on the front. We lead the train for around 10 miles before dropping subtle hints about other people helping out. Eventually one guy overheard us and took the hint and jumped onto the front.
The rain started on the last third of the course making the fast windy decent a little tricky and dangerous so we held back a little on the bends as we didn’t know how tight they were.
My mum and dad were going to be waiting at Weem, just after the final feed station. As we approached the final feed station I said to Si that I wasn’t planning on stopping as I had enough fluids and gels to see me to the end, he was in the same vote so we shot right passed it and into Weem where my mum and dad were. Approaching the spectator point I kept a look out for them and eventually spotted them both in the crowd looking at their mobiles as I shot past! I turned round and shouted “MUM” to which she looked up and acknowledged me. As I turned back round the guy in front decided to stop and I nearly ploughed into the back of him! It transpires that my mum and dad were expecting me to be through the spectator point at that time as I was well a head of my predicted schedule.
As we hit the 71 mile mark I cramped up in my left thigh AND right hamstring at the same time! At this point Si slipped away as I stretched while still on the bike and popped a gel which seemed to do the trick.
With about 6 miles to go I got talking to a boy who’d traveled all the way from London to do the event. We chatted for a while and I warned him of the upcoming steep climb before he carried on his way. Before I knew it the 90 left hand turn into the steep 250-300 meter climb was upon me. I dropped into the lower ring and powered my way up the climb out the saddle all the way with the locals lining the climb cheering us on! All that was missing was the guy in his pants with a cape around his neck running alongside shouting and screaming at you as we climbed the hill.
The last few miles were up and down and really sapped the energy out of me but powered on and turn into Pitlochry main street which was lined with cheering locals as I crossed the finishing line. Mission accomplished!
One of the little things that made this event was the support from the TA who had personnel at the end to remove your timing chip for you. Now you may not think that a big deal but after 81 miles it really is! Little things like that make a huge difference!
With the timing chip removed from my bike a collect a bottle of water, my goodie bag, if you can call it that and my medal.
My Medal
It really was a well organised event from start to finish with great support from the locals. You felt as though you were riding in one of the tour events with the Mavic car, motorbikes and crowds cheering you on.
Official Time 4:43:32
Garmin Time: 4:31
Average Speed: 18mph
Position: 1847/5000
The official time includes feed stops while the Garmin time is traveling time only. Was well chuffed with my performance and time!
I met up with Ian, Willie, Chris and Si who had already finished and waited for the rest of the boys to return. Every single one of us made the top half of the field! That was some achievement and one that we should all be proud of!
Performance of the day goes to Ian “Iron Man” Hockey who strolled home in just under 4hrs claiming 197th position! Another stand out performance was Stevie Potter who had been off the bike for just over 8 weeks after breaking his chest plate in a car crash! Only two weeks back on the bike and he’d completed the Etape Caledonia 81 miles and in the top half of the 5000 strong field!
Mission Accomplished!
With everyone over the finishing line we headed back to the cars and headed back to the hotel to get showered, then met at the Harvester for a couple of drinks before heading out for tea.
Well Earned Refreshments!
We enjoyed a few pints in the Harvester before heading into Perth for an Indian buffet where some of us did more damage to it than others, not naming any name Willie Rosling! After stuffing our faces on Indian buffet food we headed to Yates type boozer. Stevie Haining and Davie were starting to feel the pace so headed home early, Stevie Potter dropped them off as he was heading up the road as he was working on the Monday. The rest of us powered on with the help of cocktails laden with Monster Energy Drink! As the night got later, the more the drink flowed, the louder we got! Last orders were called and yet again we were last to leave the boozer, heading round to the kebab shop to finish the night off before returning to our hotel and retiring for the night.
All in all it was a great weekend, the weather was kind to us and the company was fantastic. Before the event I has said to several people that the Etape Caledonia Sportive at £63 would probably be one that I’d do, tick off the list and never do again! Having completed it and experienced the atmosphere and the support from the locals and the general organisation of the event I was buzzing and desperate to sign up for next years event!
We were raising money for local Cancer Charity Friends of the Beatson during last weeks trip to Arran and by doing the Etape Caledonia. A big thanks to all who donated and if you haven’t done so you can make a donation on our JustGiving Page.
A special mention has to go to 3LC.tv for helping me lose 2½ stone in 14 weeks and getting me in shape for this event! If you haven’t tried out their Turbo Training DVD’s I highly recommend you do! Thanks guys!
The last and most important thanks has to go to my wife Gail and our two boys Callum and Jamie for allowing me so much time out on the bike to get in shape to complete the 81 miles. Gail has been wonderful and taken Callum to his rugby and football and stood in the pouring rain and wind all by herself while I’ve been out training!
Finally the weekend of the Etape was upon us. After many preparatory pedals, more for some than others, it was time to head north to our team HQ, the Broxburn roundabout Travelodge in Perth. Well done to Stevie P in getting us such a good deal on the accommodation. With some of the lads having already travelled up on the Friday, Chris and I set sail on the good ship Hunter on Saturday morning (we were still friends at this point)
Bikes duly safely tucked up in our room, which Chris and I were informed we would be sharing with Si by the Management, (Stu Brailsford) we all set off for Pitlochry to register for the event and pick up our race packs. It was great to see all the lads who had signed up for the event there, notably Stevie P after his recent car accident and a few others who would be first to admit that they could have benefitted from a little more preparation.
There was a fantastic atmosphere of anticipation and excitement in Pitlochry around the registration area. We collected our packs, I was given my yellow Marie Curie cycling jersey for raising over £350 for their charity and Si arrived. We had a wander around the stands and shops, had a nice lamb burger for lunch and then headed for Aberfeldy, where they were hosting a bike week. There wasn’t a great deal of interest going on but the ice cream stall and roll and haggis van did a brisk trade from the hungry Warriors not satiated by the lamb burgers.
We headed back to Perth for a quick couple of pints and watched the first half of the Cup Final before heading to the Italian Corner restaurant for a nice pre-event meal. It seemed very strange to hear the majority of the lads ordering soft drinks with their meals and even stranger to watch everyone heading to their hotel rooms just after 9pm. With my race numbers attached to my Warriors kit and cycling helmet it was off to bed for, hopefully, a decent kip before a 4.30am alarm.
Competitor Number Attached
It was a very early rise on the morning of the event and with a 5.20am departure from the hotel we made it to Pitlochry for about 6.05, about an hour before our start time. It was a quite chilly 6 degrees and second guessing the behaviour of the weather for the day and consequently what to wear became the immediate concern. Thankfully it was dry and wasn’t too windy but I stuck the rain jacket in my back pocket just in case.
Si, Chris and I made our way towards the start line on the main street and found ourselves quite a distance from where we should have been. There were literally thousands of cyclists waiting to get started and we had to pick our way through them to try to make our start wave which was T.
We managed to make it but we were towards the end, with our fellow Warriors quite a bit in front of us, although we didn’t know that for a fact. Off we went and after the first few miles the pace really started to heat up. The sprint section was around the 14 mile mark but none of us contested it, preferring to conserve energy for the uncharted end territory of the last 14 miles or so. If memory serves me, which is questionable given me telling everyone the same jokes repeatedly, the first hour was about 18mph average, so just after the hour mark we arrived at the first feed station. Having only seen a couple of the lads I was expecting a regrouping situation, but after falling over due to the schoolboy error of unclipping my left foot and falling to my right I only momentarily saw Stu, Davy, Stevie and Si. We were later to discover that some had decided on a hitherto undiscussed and unheard of “no stop” strategy.
We set off again and Davy, Stevie , Si and myself found a nice set of wheels to follow, rattling along the side of Loch Rannoch as the miles flew past. Just over an hour later we found ourselves at the feedstation at the bottom of the inevitable and looming Shiehallion. Having stopped momentarily before it for a slash, we had a quick look for any of the lads and then headed into the King of The Mountains section. We fractured at that point with Si heading skyward in front of myself and Davie and Stevie in behind. The climb was fairly tough but not as hard as I had expected but from then on I was on my tod with 35 or so miles to go. I was looking forward to the descent off the back of the hill but unfortunately the rain came on at that point, which made it a little more uncomfortable and potentially a little more dangerous. I was glad I’d taken my rain jacket and put it on before continuing. It also got a bit windy at this point and from around 45 to roughly 60 odd miles things were pretty miserable. Around the 68 mile mark I found a group of 4 guys who were going fairly well and I tucked in on their wheels and was grateful to take advantage of a bit of drafting. After about 15 mins or so I spotted a Warriors kit ahead. It was Stevie P. I shouted on him to tuck in as we approached and Stevie joined the train. Unlike Mr Branson’s Virgin these guys weren’t quite as welcoming of new passengers and they made a few unsuccessful attempts at shaking us off as Stevie and I hung in there. Stevie and Stu had recced some of the route on the Saturday afternoon and he gave me the heads up about the short sharp climb around the 78 mile mark. There was a great crowd of spectators at this point, possibly due to the fact that there was a pub on the corner and their encouragement was most welcome and helped to keep the wearying legs spinning. I had a few cramping threats in the last couple of miles, which had a few naughty wee climbs but thankfully it didn’t fully kick in. As we entered Pitlochry again the crowds were fantastic and I found it amazing the strength they gave me to push on. It was a great feeling when Stevie and I crossed the line having completed the route. We collected our medals and returned our timing chips before meeting up again with some of the lads. This was a brilliantly organised event, on very good roads, which was wonderfully supported by the locals and was an amazing spectacle to be a part of. Well done to all the lads who produced some fantastic individual performances on the day. Of the 5000 participants we all finished in the top 50% and it was great to complete the 81 mile course, which was 14 miles further than I had personally completed before.
We had a great night afterwards as we stuffed our faces in an Indian buffet, in an effort to replenish the 5000 calories burned, before hitting the pub. Surprisingly we made it until closing time, thanks Monster, and they actually almost threw us out. Overall this was a great weekend with the lads and I’m already looking forward to returning next year to repeat the adventure. Thanks to everyone who contributed to my sponsorship for what is unfortunately a service which too many people have to use. In memory of my late father, Tommy Gilligan, who died of cancer in October 2011.
Due to a road closure we had to find an alternative to our planned route for this weekend. After discussion with big Chris, the well known sadist and masochist, I put the suggestion to the lads that we head for the golf ball in the sky that is the radar station. With the innocence of ignorance, having not cycled it before, Stu, Si and Willie all agreed to join us although Willie had to pull out later due to time constraints.
I was looking forward to seeing Si’s new steed / mistress and was not disappointed when he introduced the young Flo to us. She’s a pretty, racy looking little filly but I was a wee bit surprised to see that he had gone for a black version with a few too many teeth for my liking. 53-39.
We got ourselves ready and set off, Chris and I in trepidation, and Stu and Si blissfully unaware of the pain to come. Half a mile after leaving I realised I’d left my Camelbak and went back for it. Schoolboy error no.1. With 50 miles and potential altitude sickness in store why go the extra mile.
I caught up with my freewheeling friends and we headed off slightly downhill towards Sanquhar. The weather was dry, if a little chilly but it was nice when the sun occasionally broke through to provide us with a little heat. The road surface was mostly in good nick and it was encouraging to think that the headwind we were experiencing would assist us not only on the return leg home but also on our way up the Mennock Pass. I should really know better than that by now!
The bottom of the Mennock Pass
We made good pace to the bottom of the pass and stopped for some photos, pre-climb energy and a quick slash before setting off up the Khyber with the wind in our….faces. WTF. Ye cannae change the laws ae fiziks. Aye right.
We pedalled through the valley floor and the climb started to ramp up before us. I got into a rhythm and Stu shot off the front. He opened a gap of about 100 yards which he maintained for a bit. Onwards and upwards we went and the gap began to narrow with every glance over the big man’s shoulder. We finally crested with Stu having 20 yards on Si. Half a mile later we again paused in preparation at the barrier for the private road up to the station. We were only delaying the inevitable so we clipped in and started our ascent. Having done the climb twice before I knew that the golf ball is a bit of an optical illusion in that on several occasions it looks to be closer than it is, which can be as disappointing and deflating as a false summit.
This time it was Si who was in full Flo and he powered away skywards, out of the saddle quite a bit keeping those teeth spinning. Stu went off after him but he was tiring noticeably towards the top. With his heart rate at 181 and me 4 yards behind him drumming out at 185, the big chap unclipped and stopped for a few seconds. Frightened to stop, incase I couldn’t get started again, I crawled on, slowly inching towards the summit. It felt great to crest, knowing that the pain was over for now and that we had the joy of the descent to look forward to.
Job’s a good un.
Radar Station. Done!
We paused for a few pictures and to get our breath and then it was time to scare the shit out of ourselves on the way down. We skelped off the hill, whooping on the way down, with Chris, Si and I full of big smiles and buzzing at the bottom. The excitement was short lived though when we realised that we had been down for over a minute and there was no sign of big Stu. We joked that he may have spied a particularly attractive sheep on the way down but that was just to mask our concern that all might not be well. The thought of climbing the bloody hill again was a horrible one but there was nothing else for it. We climbed up for a couple of minutes and then saw the big man coming over the hill. He explained that he had thrown his chain as we set off and then he stopped on the way down, not recognising the road,thought he may have missed a turn and had climbed back up a bit to check!! Missed a turn, it’s a feckin single track road!!! That altitude sickness can really play tricks on some people. We were relieved to see that all was ok though, gave him a bit of a ribbing about the sheep theory and got to enjoy the last wee sweeping section of the descent again.
We decided to retrace our steps back to Crawfordjohn so we had the Mennock pass to descend now. It was awesome. We flew down it in no time, with no traffic coming towards us so we got to use the full road and again it was all smiles when we passed the gold panners in the river at the valley floor.
We stopped for a well earned coffee and cake in Sanquhar before making our way back to the cars, with the wind, yes you guessed it… in our faces again.
Well done lads in completing a tough and challenging pedal. I’m sure we will reap the benefits of it in the next couple of weeks.
Schoolboy error no.2 was that I didn’t have my Garmin on autopause so I missed the descent of the Mennock Pass. See Stu’s blog for the Garmin file. 3800 feet of climbing and 51 miles at about 14.1mph average I think.
Sunday
Headed into the Scottish Bike show in the velodrome today with Stu, Stevie and Si. Ian Hockey and Tamara were there as well and it looks like we should have quite a big team for next weekend trip to Arran or wherever. I enjoyed the show, got to meet Gary & Scott who produce the Veloclub Don Logan cycling podcast and also spoke to Richard Moore, the author of the excellent books Slaying The Badger and In Search Of Robert Millar, picking up a few freebies on the way ( you missed yourself Willie, there were loads of freebie power bar pieces). All in all a bloody good weekend. Thanks lads.
